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Media Contacts
![Two hybrid poplar plants, middle and right, engineered with the PtrXB38 hub gene exhibited a drastic increase in root and callus formation compared with a wild-type control plant, left. Credit: Tao Yao/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2023-10/Poplar%20root%20story%20tip%20as%20JPEG_0.jpg?h=7bc542ef&itok=HNxpeEt6)
Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientists identified a gene “hotspot” in the poplar tree that triggers dramatically increased root growth. The discovery supports development of better bioenergy crops and other plants that can thrive in difficult conditions while storing more carbon belowground.
![ORNL and Enginuity researchers proved that a micro combined heat and power prototype, or mCHP, with an opposed piston engine can achieve more than 93% overall energy efficiency. The environmentally friendly mCHP can replace a back-up generator or traditional hot water heater. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Department of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2023-06/storytipjb.png?h=ddb1ad0c&itok=0ZTdSit5)
ORNL researchers, in collaboration with Enginuity Power Systems, demonstrated that a micro combined heat and power prototype, or mCHP, with a piston engine can achieve an overall energy efficiency greater than 93%.
![Researchers from ORNL’s Vehicle and Autonomy Research Group created a control strategy for a hybrid electric bus that demonstrated up to 30% energy savings. Credit: University of California, Riverside](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2021-09/pheb.jpeg?h=4521fff0&itok=nLwLQA4d)
Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers developed and demonstrated algorithm-based controls for a hybrid electric bus that yielded up to 30% energy savings compared with existing controls.
![ORNL researchers determined lower heat exchange in lithium-ion batteries is caused by the strong non-harmonic forces among ions and weak interaction between layers, providing guidance for high-density battery design. Credit: Tianli Feng/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2020-11/Batteries-Catching_heat.jpg?h=8268b4f9&itok=A6MFlGFT)
Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers proved that the heat transport ability of lithium-ion battery cathodes is much lower than previously determined, a finding that could help explain barriers to increasing energy storage capacity and boosting performance.
![Salting the gears](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2019-09/Salting-the-gears_1_0.png?h=b00637a2&itok=gsk3DeGh)
Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory proved that a certain class of ionic liquids, when mixed with commercially available oils, can make gears run more efficiently with less noise and better durability.
![Coexpression_hi-res_image[1].jpg Coexpression_hi-res_image[1].jpg](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/Coexpression_hi-res_image%5B1%5D_0.jpg?itok=OnLe-krT)
While studying the genes in poplar trees that control callus formation, scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have uncovered genetic networks at the root of tumor formation in several human cancers.
![EPSP_gene_study2_ORNL.jpg EPSP_gene_study2_ORNL.jpg](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/EPSP_gene_study2_ORNL.jpg?itok=3uwX_49J)
For decades, biologists have believed a key enzyme in plants had one function—produce amino acids, which are vital to plant survival and also essential to human diets. But for Wellington Muchero, Meng Xie and their colleagues, this enzyme does more than advertised. They had run a series of experiments on poplar plants that consistently revealed mutations in a structure of the life-sustaining enzyme that was not previously known to exist.
![BraundmeierA_SIU_ORNL BraundmeierA_SIU_ORNL](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/BraundmeierA_0011_0.jpg?itok=--Bxi4IU)
It’s common knowledge that driving aggressively can dent gas mileage, but it’s difficult to determine exactly how much gas drivers waste. A new study by researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has quantified the impact speeding and slamming on the brakes has on fuel economy and consumption. They found that aggressive behavior behind the wheel can lower gas mileage in light-duty vehicles by about 10 to 40 percent in stop-and-go traffic and roughly 15 to 30 percent at highway speeds. This can equate to losing about $0.25 to $1 per gallon.
![Brian Davison](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/Davison200_2.jpg?h=d81372d4&itok=A5lppIGk)
Brian Davison, a researcher at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, has been awarded a 2017 fellowship by the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology (SIMB).